Jessie Jackson Concerned for His Depressed Son, Jesse Jr.

Jessie Jackson, Jr. recently took a leave of absence from Congress after being hospitalized for depression.

The source of his turmoil hasn’t been revealed just yet, but he was treated at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota for gastrointestinal issues as well.

“What we thought to be quote-unquote exhaustion was something much deeper, much broader and it lasted much longer,” the elder Jackson said to HuffPost Live’s Marc Lamont Hill and Alicia Menendez on Thursday. “My first [priority] is his health, not his politics,” Jackson said.

Jackson was asked if perhaps the Rod Blagojevich scandal may have triggered the downward spiral. In the midst of it, Jackson is currently being investigated by the House of Ethics Committee because of charges that he allegedly raised money for Blagojevich’s campaign in exchange for the former governor to name him to the U.S. Senate.

Jackson didn’t speak on it. Instead deferred to his parenting skills.

“I come to this as a father who loves his son very much and wants him to get the best medical care and the time he needs to regain his strength.”